What kind of restaurants and food you can find in Japan?
This blog is for "Food Lovers" who are planning to travel in Japan, who are non-Japanese speakers living in Japan and all who are interested in food culture of Japan!
英語で日本の食文化を紹介するブログです。

8 posts from July 2012

29 July 2012

This is the second post to honor the sports event in UK, following the previous post about authentic British pub in Shibuya.

Another pub, called Upper House is in Kamata, unpretenious residential area near Haneda International Airport. It is less than 5 minutes walk from JR Kamata station and situated on a side of lively narrow street (Yokocho 横丁) along a rail way, where casual small bars and restaurants stand in a row and are filled with locals.

The reason why we feature this pub for today's post is... Recently by a local radio program, fish & chips (obviously the most known British food) at Upper House is named as "No.1 Fish & Chips" in Tokyo. If you stay in Kamata maybe because of your flight schedule from/to Haneda International Airport, it may be a good idea to drop by Upper House in order to try the best fish & chips or to feel the cosy home-away-home atmosphere for Western tourists.

Well about the fish and chips...

This is it The fish is very crispy and

that remained crispy even after 30 minutes from it served

Chips are also crispy, needless to say, and

are well seasoned with salt so as to be matched with beer perfectly

The original tartar sauce was also so nice to clear the cup out.

Although the volume is Japanese style, smaller than the original in UK.

The taste, we agree, is the best Fish & Chips in Tokyo.

If the volume is not enough to satisfy your appetite, the pub offers additional piece of fish at small amount of cost. Please do not forget that Japan is famous for fish cooking. We guess that the chef selects good quality of fish for the best Fish & Chips.

Another recommendable plate at Upper House is "Maguro and Avocado Iwanori dip" (tuna and avocado with narutal seaweed dip.)

Bayside area of Tokyo, including Kamata, is traditionally the origin of seaweed.

Please be careful not to be too much enjoyed to miss your flight from Haneda International Airport

From Bus terminal in front of West Exit of JR Kamata, take left direction to Tokyu line station. Take a narrow street where "Tokyu store" super market and Gindaco (octopus ball stand) are at the corner. Upper House is on the left side of the street, uderpass of railway.

25 July 2012

We understand high quality Japanese beef is quite popular among readers of this blog and that to have it in Japan is one of attractions to be completed during your trip in Japan.

Today's feature a small restaurant in Roppongi (also known for the largest night spot of Tokyo) providing high quality Japanese beef at very reasonable cost.

The restaurant's operator, Sugimoto (スギモト) is one of established meat distributors and founded in 1900. Especially based in Central (chubu) region of Japan, it deals with recognized Matsusaka beef (松坂牛) which is eaqually appreciated as the best of best beef in Japan with well-know Kobe beef. Not only to distribute meat products to restaurants and retailers across Japan, Sugimoto runs own restaurants. One of them is located in Tokyo Midtown, a luxury shopping complex in Roppongi.

The small restaurant only with 14 seats is behind Sugimoto's butcher store counter on the underground floor. Many people could miss a chance to get the high quality beef available at just over Yen 1000, overlooking the tiny entrance. Otherwise several people might be making a queue in front of it.

The restaurant offers only several menu such as hamburg steak and sukiyaki but it is enough to taste the high quality beef at the best condition and in the best way.

Sukiyaki (beef with vegetable hot pot) is the best way to enjoy Sugimoto's best Japanese beef. It is cooked in a small pot like this just for a person and is served with fresh egg for dipping sauce like other restaurants do.

Oh! we have to mention the price of this Sukiyaki menu... it is at Yen 1380 for Sukiyaki with wagyu brand and at Yen 3150 with the highest quality Matsusaka beef for one person. Both are set menu with rice and miso soup. They can be a double price if you have same menu with same quality beef at ordinary sukiyaki restaurants. Here, as you can imagine, it is exclusively available at such reasonable price due to the distributor's own and direct operation.

The small eating space must be comfortable even for a sole-diner, unlike a normal sukiyaki hot pot restaurant.

The last ordering time for Sugimoto's Midtown unit is 20h30. It will be a good to have sukiyaki before dispatching out to the night spots in Roppongi.

In Tokyo, Sugimoto recently opened its newer unit in Solamachi, the shopping complex attached to Tokyo Skytree.

There, some Japanese beef menus are provided at around Yen 2000. It must be still good bargain considering the quality of beef.

21 July 2012

London Olympic games will be started very soon. So honoring the sports event, this time we introduce a "real" British pub located in a part of nightspot of Shibuya. Here you may find live British football games taken place at the Olympic host (and football's origin ) country rather than the Olympic games in 2012. Anyway there we are able to feel "real British" feeling.

British Pub "Aldgate" is located in a multitenant building along the busiest "Shibuya Center-gai" (渋谷センター街). The street starting from the most famouse Shibuya diagonal crossing is always filled with young Japaneses and some foreigners, all who are hopping around boutiques, restaurants, bars or many kinds of entertainment places like karaoke, electric game arcade or comedy theatre.

Some people might be embarrassed by the noisy ambience and chaotic situation in the area around Shibuya Center-gai, especially on weekend night. So it's better to check a few of nice places to visit, like Aldgate, our today's feature. Even the Aldgate on the third floor of a small building, it might be difficult to find it without a map, as many bars and restaurants and their signs are found along the noisy long street.

Aldgate offers 20 regular draught beer including ale that are rare to find in Tokyo as well as Japanese craft beer brand "Yona yona real ale". In addition, another several kinds of guest draught beer are available. Finally Aldgate must be one of bars which has the largest number of draught beer selections in Tokyo.

For food, needless to say, British icon item, fish & chips is on the list. We can also find "deeper" Brisith food such as cottage pie, beef in Ale, Welsh rabbit, Jacket potato, chicken and celery pudding and "Marmite". Now you see why it is "real" British pub.

Not only because of the wide selections of draught beer and British food but also through its interior decoration, for example, English letters on blackboard, sign boards and flags, all hang on the wall around the bar, we feel full-of-British atmosphere in Shibuya.

19 July 2012

As one of our previous posts, unagi (うなぎ, eel) is one of summer icons in Japan. It is believed among Japanese that unagi as food energizes us much. On the beginning of Summer season, to take eel is an important event to prepare for Japan's hot and humid summer.

However in this year, the price of eel is shaking the Japaneses' tradition. Since last summer, the price of eel has risen up to more than double of the price range in 2008-2010. (Check the trend of eel price. Click here.) Narurally restaurants and supermarkets are foced to increase the price of the fishery products. The sky-high deal price of eel is considered due to bad catches of young eel not only in Japan area but also in China and Taiwan, two biggest alternative eel fishing places.

Some of Unagi specialized restaurants started offering alternative menu such as similar species, conger (anago, 穴子) or pork grilled with sweet sauce originally made for unagi, while increasing their prices for unagi menu by around 20 - 40% or offering smaller pieces of unagi. Finally at traditional Unagi restaurants, the most typical unagi menu "Una-ju" (Unagi with rice on a square box) is at around Yen 2500 - Yen 4000.

Now unagi is very luxury product like fois gras or truffle.

Any way we can enjoy it at reasonable price?

Then we have a way to go to the most famous beef-bowl first food chain "Yoshinoya" (吉野家).

This summer, Yoshinoya offers Una-don (鰻丼, unagi on rice bowl) at just Yen 650 for regular size. The piece of Unagi is not so large to cover the rice but the reasonable price allows us to have the eel menu more than once

Una-don at Yoshinoya

Small piece? but

it is still soft and enough rick taste eel.

The price must be enough for those who have never tried eel in your country and who is wondering if it is good taste or not. We are sure it is worth trying once in Japan. It is a food that Japanese can never miss it.

15 July 2012

Hot and humid Summer is arrived in Tokyo. Today's post is about an oasis providing fresh fruits juice.

If you are based in US, probably you already know about the juice-focused shop born in L.A., Robecks Juice.

The West Coast style juice shop arrived in Tokyo last year and the second unit also opened recently in Harajuku.

Robecks Juice's main products are premium smoothies made with fresh and healthy ingredients, which will be made after it is ordered. It offers more than 10 selections of smoothies with fresh fruits strawberry, banana, orange, pineapple etc. In addition, if you prefer something more watery, fresh juice carrot or orange, hot juice, fruits tea are also available. Yuzu (Japanese citrus) honey tea, Mango & Leomon hot juice etc...they are also attractive options.

These drinks are of course the best suit for breakfast time. So Robeck Juice opens from morning 7h30 a.m and offers food also suitable for breakfast such as muffin, croissant, cinamon roll and sandwiches.

The first unit of Robecks Juice in Jiyugaoka residential area of Tokyo has two floors with ample seating space. In some parts, it has a large table with electrical outlets for "nomad-workers." That makes your work-life healthier? The bringht and pop atomosphere reminds us the brand coming from L.A.

Another thing to be noted about Robecks Juice units based in Japan, they use high quality "Tsujirihei-Honten" (辻利兵衛本店) branded green tea from Kyoto for their green tea related products.

Your accompanying person would not like to take fruits juice? Don't worry it also provides coffee like an ordinary cafe.

11 July 2012

If you have ever been to Shinjuku (新宿), you must understand that there are "too" many restaurant choices in the heart of this metropolitan city. There are many nice ones but it is not easy to find one that is the best fit for your feeling at that time without any pre-screening process or recommendation from someone. The situation is same for local Japaneses.

Today's our recommendation, Japanese cafe Yusoshi, is for the time when...

you would like to try some Japanese but not too much localized

and would like to stay close from the train station.

Yusoshi is situated on 6th floor of one of major shopping complex in Shinjuku, Lumine "1" (Keep in mind more than a few Lumine around the station). It is just one minute from JR Shinjuku South Exit and is directly connected from the station's ticket gate.

The restaurant calls itself as "wa(Japanese)-cafe". The name Yusoshi is not familiar even for local Japanese. As per thier expression, yu-so-shi (愉 - 想 - 使) represents to imagine something joyful and to express and deliver the joy.

If you see the menu for dinner time, you would think of it as modern Izakaya. On evening, Yusoshi provides more than just what is expected for cafe. Like at Izakaya, some snacks on the menu are well matched with alcohol drinks also available there. The dishes have Japanese taste to some extent but not fully. They are more close to Western menu; for example, spicy fried potato, fried chicken wings in sweet and hot flavor, seafood croquette, curry flavor fried pork, fried swordfish with spicy tartar, avocado-tuna rice bowl etc etc. We are sure you do not have to be afraid of encountering some extreme Japanese local taste.

A half of the tables are on this floor (as the photo), looked like "tatami" at a glance but is actually made of glass with lighting. Take off your shoses and sit on a zabuton cuision with bending knees. Let's be relaxed in Japanese style. That is what Japanese people do at their home

Probably because of the modern Japanese menu, modern but relaxing atmosphere as well as the location a few minutes from Shinjuku station, Yusoshi is always filled mainly with Japanese ladies. That differs from ordinary Izakaya.

Of course, during a day, Yusoshi serves as a nice cafe and offers several selections of drinks from Japanese green tea to vanila latte and sweets made with Japanese ingredients.

07 July 2012

As some of you know well, the Spain team won at the UEFA football Euro 2012 final on last Sunday.

Congraturation to Spanish

Then today we introduce a nice Spanish restaurant or bar in Ginza.

For last several years, we see many Spanish restaurant newly opened in Tokyo. "El Cerdo", located in an edge of Ginza the most luxury shopping district of Japan, is one of them and some Japanese people consider El Cerdo as one of the best in term of cost performance and tastiness.

If you understand Spanish language, you surely recognize the restaurant's name called "the pig" in English. Yes, the Spanish restaurant features "the meat of pig", particularly several different high quality Iberico pork dishes on the hand-writing menu list on black boards.

The atmoshpere in darker lighting surrounded with red color walls is chic as many picture frames hang on the walls. Look at the pictures carefully. You will find that they are not just for creating the sophisticated mood. Spanish pigs and cattle farmers are on the pictures.

What we can find on the menu list on blackboards and a piece of paper list; Needless to say, slices of raw pork ham, sausages, or with a bit Japanese flavour, pork steak with wasabi (Japanese hot green horseradish paste) and pork sautee garlic soy sauce.

Of course, also we can find non-pork Spanish dishes such as "tortilla" (Spanish style omlet), 3 kinds of paella, cod croquette etc.

All plates sound attractive.... finally what we chose for the early summer evening, for examples...

Ice fish ("shirauo" in Japanese) with garlic sautee with poached egg

Mushroom raw-ham-stuffed

Pork steak with wasabi paste,

with sweet grilled vegetables

They are all what we should bring them into the mouth within a few minutes after the dishes arrive. In other words, the best time to take those food is as long as they are still hot just after cooked. We do not recomend that you go to the Spanish restaurant when you have a lot of thing to talk with your accompanied diners. In that case, you might loose a chance to enjoy the nice and hot Spanish dishes at their best timing.

Just concentrate on appreciating the Spanish delicacies

*** Additional Note ***

We are pleased to announce that this post about Spanish bar "El Cerdo" has been featured by another foodie site in Spain, paladar y tomar.